Toddlers in Britain get almost half their calories from ultra-processed foods (UPFs), including flavored yoghurts and wholegrain breakfast cereals, a new study shows.
This figure rises even further to 59 percent of total calories by the time children reach the age of seven, researchers from University College London (UCL) found.
Experts have warned that eating patterns in the early years can create habits that last into adulthood, adding that UPFs marketed for children often contain excessive amounts of salt and sugar.
And they said more must be done to reduce the amount of UPFs consumed by young people, following their ‘worrying’ findings.
The team analyzed data from 2,591 children born in Britain in 2007 and 2008, whose parents kept track of what they ate and drank for three days.
Experts have warned that eating patterns in the early years can create habits that last into adulthood
The Nova system, developed by scientists in Brazil more than a decade ago, divides food into four groups based on the amount of processing it has undergone. Unprocessed foods include fruits, vegetables, nuts, eggs and meat. Processed culinary ingredients – which are not usually eaten alone – include oils, butter, sugar and salt
The most common UPFs consumed by the toddlers — who were 21 months old when their parents monitored their diets — were flavored yogurt and whole-grain cereal, items generally considered healthy.
At age seven, the most common UPFs were sweet cereals, white bread, and pudding.
Lead author Dr Rana Conway said: ‘Ultra-processed foods are not all bad for our health and the foods typically eaten by the toddlers in our study are considered quite healthy.
‘However, some wholegrain cereals and flavored yoghurts contain high levels of added sugars and salt and our research found that toddlers who consumed more ultra-processed foods also had higher intakes of these ingredients.
‘This is concerning, especially as toddlers generally consume more added sugar and salt than recommended.
Toddlers in Britain get almost half of their calories from ultra-processed foods (UPFs). That includes flavored yogurt and whole-grain cereal
‘Aside from sugar and salt, a diet high in ultra-processed foods is less likely to introduce children to the natural flavors of whole foods and is therefore less likely to encourage healthy eating later in life.’
They also found that ultra-processed foods consumed at age 21 predicted UPF consumption at age seven.
Toddlers who consumed the most UPFs were 9.4 times more likely to be in the highest UPF consumption group at age seven compared to toddlers who consumed the lowest percentage of UPFs.
The research team said this may be partly due to the ‘hyperpalatable’ nature of these UPFs, as they tend to be foods with higher fat, sugar or salt content.
Senior author Professor Clare Llewellyn said: ‘Eating patterns in the early years are important because they help establish habits that can last into childhood and into adulthood.
‘This was reflected in our findings: children aged 21 months who ate more ultra-processed foods were also likely to be greater consumers of ultra-processed foods at age seven.’
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UPFs, which can also include biscuits, sausages, chips and industrially manufactured sliced bread, typically contain ingredients that are not or very rarely used in home cooking, such as colorings and sweeteners.
The findings, published in the European Journal of Nutrition, also showed that all toddlers involved in the study consumed more free sugars than national guidelines recommend.
The researchers are now calling for policies to restore the balance in children’s diets to a lower percentage of UPFs, such as limiting the promotion of unhealthy foods marketed to children, adding warning labels to products and subsidizing of fresh and minimally processed food.
Dr. Conway said, “Feeding children healthily is not easy in our current food environment. Highly processed foods are often cheaper than the foods parents would like to feed their children, such as fresh fruits and vegetables.
‘Despite labels suggesting they are a healthy choice, ultra-processed foods marketed to children often contain too much sugar and salt. That makes it more difficult for parents to make healthy choices.’